Melbourne

Residential developer buys St Kilda landmark

2013-09-18T05:00:00Z

181 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda

MELBOURNE, 18 SEPTEMBER 2013 – Residential developer, Pace Development Group has purchased the Australian Institute of Management’s headquarters at 173-191 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda for $17,150,000. The sale reflects a site rate of approximately $7,992 per sqm.

CBRE’s Kiran Pillai and Mark Coster together with James Kaufman and Steven Messina of Jones Lang LaSalle sold the six level building located opposite Junction Oval via an Expressions of Interest campaign.

Chairman of the Australian Institute of Management VT, Geoff Fary said, “The beautiful Junction Oval precinct has been the Australian Institute of Management’s HQ and operational centre for 20 years”.

“However, increasingly the built landscape here is being filled with luxury apartments so we felt the time was right to relocate to improved premises in the CBD where many of our members and clients are based,” Mr Fary added.

Currently comprising five levels of office space, associated retail and a substantial basement car park, the property occupies a total land area of 2,146sqm with wide, dual street frontages to Fitzroy Street and Pattison Street. The site has the potential for a 10-12 level residential redevelopment.

Mr Pillai said, “The offering was one of the finest development opportunities put to the market in recent times. The site allows for uninterrupted views across Albert Park Lake and the Melbourne CBD as well as sweeping views of Port Phillip Bay”.

Mr Kaufman said, “There has been a huge resurgence in residential activity over the last six months. Sales of completed apartments to privates, owner occupiers and offshore investors had gained momentum in light of favourable market conditions and falling interest rates.”

Mr Messina added, “International developers are currently dominating the CBD market which is seeing competition heat up from domestic players in city fringe locations.”